"Lost" - awarded the 2005 Emmy and 2006 Golden Globe for best drama series - has begun production in Hawaii on third season episodes of action-packed mystery and adventure -- that will continue to bring out the very best and the very worst in the people who are lost. The series will have its season premiere WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 4 (9:00-10:00 p.m., ET), on the ABC Television Network.

After Oceanic Air flight 815 tore apart in mid-air and crashed on a Pacific island, its survivors were forced to find inner strength they never knew they had in order to survive. But they discovered that the island holds many secrets, including a mysterious smoke monster, polar bears, a strange French woman and another group of island residents known as "The Others." The survivors have also found signs of those who came to the island before them, including a 19th century sailing ship called The Black Rock, the remains of an ancient statue and bunkers belonging to the Dharma Initiative, a group of scientific researchers.

Jack, Kate and Sawyer open the season in captivity as prisoners of "The Others." Just who these "Others" are and what they want are primary questions Season Three will explore. Michael Emerson joins the regular cast in his ongoing role as Henry Gale, leader of "The Others." Romance looms on the horizon as Jack's interests veer towards a mysterious new woman, whose motives may be questionable. Sun and Jin will continue to celebrate their pregnancy - but is the child really Jin's? Locke and Sayid will band together with some of the other survivors and journey across the island in an attempt to free Jack, Kate and Sawyer. Charlie will attempt to return into the good graces of Claire and her baby, Aaron, but can he be trusted to stay clean and sober? The fates of Locke, Desmond and Mr. Eko in the aftermath of the implosion of the hatch are answered. Will Penny Widmore find the island and her long, lost love, Desmond, and can the survivors find a way to interact with the outside world?

The band of friends, family, enemies and strangers must continue to work together against the cruel weather and harsh terrain if they want to stay alive. But as they have discovered during their 60-plus days on the island, danger and mystery loom behind every corner, and those they thought could be trusted may turn against them. Even heroes have secrets.

The Guardian profiles the great BBC deejay Charlie Gillett who, sadly, is giving up his regular world music program due to health problems. Along with helping to expose a huge new audience to music from Africa and elsewhere, Gillett also penned what is, for my money, the best book ever written about the history of American rock'n'roll: "The Sound of the City."

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Rhino is releasing expanded versions of the first two Pretenders albums.

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Elisabeth Sladen is reprising her role as Doctor Who companion Sarah Jane Smith in a spin-off series from the BBC, according to Outpost Gallifrey. The show follows Smith's investigations into the unknown and is tentatively titled, appropriately enough, "Sarah Jane Investiages."

It seems remarkable that we celebrated the 40th anniversary of Rubber Soul just eight months ago. Now it's Revolver (it was released Aug. 5, 1966). And in only 10 months time, Sgt. Pepper will be 40 years old too.

Three groundbreaking albums, each released less than a year apart from one another. This was the period when the Fabs started making quantum leaps from record to record. Their sound, their appearances, even their philosophical outlooks changed radically. And while Sgt. Pepper generally gets credit as the big breakthrough, changing pop into art, Revolver may the most radical album of the three.

While Rubber Soul saw a transition into more introspective songwriting and the addition of new instrumental textures (such as the sitar on "Norwegian Wood,"), the first song recorded for Revolver was "Tomorrow Never Knows," a piece that forever changed people's expectations of what pop music could sound like and what pop musicians could do.

Everything about the tune was unique, new and experimental. The lyrics, which John Lennon cribbed from Timothy Leary's "The Psychedelic Experience," described cosmic transcendence via Eastern philosophy and L.S.D. Lennon's chanting dalai llama vocals were recorded by sending his voice through a revolving Lesley speaker. Over the top, Paul McCartney layered a series of musique concrete tape loops he'd recorded experimentally at home.

No pop record had ever sounded like this before. And it was released by the most popular and successful band on the planet, not some underground scruffs with artistic pretensions.

And this is just the most dramatic example on an album full of, as a review in Gramophone described it, "smoking hot newness."

"Taxman" blended a funky, Motown bassline with a searing Eastern-tinged guitar solo with lyrics lampooning the Inland Revenue and contemporary British politicians.

"Yellow Submarine" supplemented its childlike tune and lyrics with off-the-wall sound effects and, months before the same trick was used on Sgt. Pepper's "For the Benefit of Mr. Kite," a brass band section developed by slicing up short sections of existing recordings and splicing them together at random.

"I'm Only Sleeping" celebrated sloth with a drowsy tempo and druggy, backwards guitars.

And those are just a few of the highlights.

Certainly, Revolver can be viewed as a transition from the folk/rock/soul of Rubber Soul to the full-blown psychedelia of Pepper, but there's a good case to be made of it being the Beatles' best, most signifcant album. If they'd quit after it's release and never done another thing, people would still be talking about it now. But amazingly, they went on to do even more.

Via Blog@Newsarama: The Scooby Doo Mystery Machine van and Herbie the Love Bug have beat out the Batmobile in a poll of Best Fictional Cars of All-Time. People voting in this poll were clearly confused because... c'mon! The Batmobile! There is nothing better on wheels! Look at this friggin' thing:

The Marvel and DC Comics solicitations for Octobert 2006 were posted here a while back. But looking through the listings, here's some other stuff to keep an eye out for:

AMERICAS GREATEST COMICS #16by Black, Newman, and TothThe recent passing of Alex Toth was a loss to both comics and the world in general. AC Comics pays tribute to Toth by reprinting four of his greatest tales from the pages of Rex Allen, Buster Crabbe, Sea Hunt and Roy Rogers! See the artwork that made this man an artistic legend! 52pgs, B&W SRP: $6.95

ALEX RAYMONDS FLASH GORDON VOL 5 HCby Alex RaymondVolume Five of Flash Gordon includes the stories "The Ice Kingdom of Mongo," "Power Men of Mongo," and "The Fall of Ming," all originally appearing from 1940 to 1941. This quintessential science fiction title has all the trappings of what has now become the standard for modern-day sci-fi. (SEP052847) HC, 100pgs, FC SRP: $19.95

COMPLETE PEANUTS VOL 6 1961-62 HCby Charles M. Schulz Launching into the 1960s, Schulz adds another new cast member. Two, in fact: The obnoxious Frieda, of "naturally curly hair" fame, and her inert, seemingly boneless cat Faron. The rapidly maturing Sally, who was after all just born in the previous volume, is ready to start kindergarten and not at all happy about it. Linus' life is particularly turbulent in this volume, as he is forced to wear glasses, sees the unexpected return of his favorite teacher, Miss Othmar, and coaxes Sally into the cult of the Great Pumpkin (with regrettable results). Snoopy, meanwhile, becomes a compulsive water sprinkler head stander, unhappily befriends a snowman or two, and endures a family crisis involving a little family of birds. Plus baseball blowouts (including a rare team victory), Beethoven birthdays, and plenty of dubious psychiatric help for a nickel. This book collects 730 daily and Sunday comic strips, the vast majority of which are not currently available in any in-print Peanuts collection, and many of which have never been reprinted since their initial appearance in papers over 50 years ago. New introduction by legendary jazz pianist/vocalist Diana Krall! (C: 1-0-0) NOTE: Available only in the United States, Canada, and U.S. Territories. HC, 8.5x7, 344pgs, B&W SRP: $28.95

EC ARCHIVES WEIRD SCIENCE VOL 1 HCBy William Gaines & VariousStar Wars creator George Lucas kicks off the full-color, chronological, hardcover presentation of the EC Comics line with a foreword introducing readers to the wonders of Weird Science. Included are stories by Al Feldstein, Bill Gaines and others with art by legendary illustrators such as Wally Wood, Harvey Kurtzman, Joe Orlando, Jack Kamen, Feldstein and others from the first six issues of this pivotal comic book title! (C: 0-1-2) HC, 8x11, 212pgs, FC SRP: $49.95

CARTOON AMERICA: COMIC ART IN THE LIBRARY OF CONGRESSEdited by Harry KatzLike jazz and baseball, cartoons are an indelible, indigenous part of American culture. Published in conjunction with the Library of Congress's landmark exhibition of original art from the collection of cartoonist J. Arthur Wood, Jr., Cartoon America celebrates 250 years of American cartooning with an unprecedented selection of original art by the best, most accomplished creators in the history of comics illustration, including Thomas Nast, Charles Schulz, Winsor McCay, and Jules Feiffer, with accompanying essays by such luminaries as John Updike, Art Spiegelman, and Chris Ware. (7/0-8109-5490-7) (C: 0-1-2) HC, 10x10, 324pgs, FC SRP: $50.00

DISGUISED AS CLARK KENT: JEWS COMICS CREATION OF SUPERHERO HCby Danny FingerothMany of the creators of the most famous super-heroes were from Jewish backgrounds, cultural or religious. Disguised as Clark Kent explores how this Jewish consciousness affected the content of the comics and contributed to making characters such as Superman, Batman, Spider-Man, and Wonder Woman into the most familiar popular-culture icons of all time. (4570/0-8264-1767-1) (C: 0-1-2) HC, 6x9, 216pgs SRP: $24.95

UP UP AND OY VEY SCby Simcha WeinsteinWhile the Jewish contribution to film, theater, music, and comedy has been well-documented, the Jewish role in the creation of the All-American superhero has not been - until now! From the birth of Krypton in Cleveland to the Caped Crusader, Captain America, the Incredible Hulk, Spider-Man, the X-Men, and more, Up, Up, and Oy Vey! chronicles the uncanny story behind the story about the origins of the planet's most famous superheroes. (7354/1-881927-32-6) (C: 0-1-2) NOTE: This item may be available through other retail outlets before shipping to comic book specialty shops. SC, 7x10, 116pgs SRP: $19.95

ALL STAR COMPANION VOL 2 TPby Roy Thomas Roy Thomas' new sequel presents still more secrets of the Justice Society of America and All-Star Comics, from 1940 through the 1980s. Featuring: a fabulous wraparound cover by Carlos Pacheco; more amazing information and speculation on the classic All-Star Comics of 1940-1951; never-before-seen Golden Age art by Irwin Hasen, Carmine Infantino, Alex Toth, Mart Nodell, Paul Reinman, H.G. Peter, and others; art from the unpublished 1940s JSA story "The Will of William Wilson" not seen in Volume 1; rare art from the original 1963-1985 JLA-JSA team-ups and the 1970s All-Star Comics revival by Mike Sekowsky, Dick Dillin, Joe Staton, Wally Wood, Keith Giffen, and Ric Estrada; full coverage of the 1980s All-Star Squadron, Young All-Stars, America vs. The Justice Society, and Last Days of the Justice Society, with a bio of every single All-Star (from Air Wave to Zatara), featuring never-seen art by Jerry Ordway, Rich Buckler, Adrian Gonzales, and Todd McFarlane. Plus, notes and illustrations on the original 1940s DC Comics sources of Roy's All-Star Squadron stories, as well as special JSA-related art and features by Frank Brunner, Alex Ross, Neal Adams, Gil Kane, Mike Mignola, and Ramona Fradon. (C: 0-1-2) SC, 8x11, 208pgs SRP: $21.95

SHADOW DOUBLE NOVEL VOL 1The Shadow returns in two of his greatest pulp adventures: "Crime, Insured" (acclaimed as Walter Gibson's greatest thriller) and "The Golden Vulture" (revised by Gibson from Lester Dent's 1932 tryout novel that won him the Doc Savage contract), featuring writers Walter B. Gibson and Lester Dent (writing as "Maxwell Grant"), and artists George Rozen and Edd Cartier The first volume of this new series reproduces both original covers by George Rozen, plus all of the original interior illustrations by Edd Cartier. This book also includes new historical background articles by popular culture historians Anthony Tollin and Will Murray (who collaborated posthumously with Dent on Seven new Doc Savage novels previously published by Bantam). (Sanctum Productions) (C: 0-1-2) SC, 7x10, B&W SRP: $12.95

The official "Lost" podcastthis week features material from the show's panel session at the recent Comic-Con International in San Diego, with producers and cast members talking about the series. More "Lost."

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Dial B for Blog is auditioning members for the Legion of Super-heroes.

BURBANK, CA, 31 July 2006 – As a follow up to last year’s blockbuster Batman Begins, Christopher Nolan is set to direct Warner Bros. Pictures’ The Dark Knight, written by Jonathan Nolan, based on a story by Christopher Nolan and David Goyer. The film will be produced by Emma Thomas, Charles Roven and Christopher Nolan. Additionally, Christian Bale will resume his role as Bruce Wayne and Academy Award nominee Heath Ledger has been cast as The Joker. The announcements were made today by Jeff Robinov, President of Production, Warner Bros. Pictures.

Christopher Nolan revamped the Batman franchise in 2005 with the immensely successful Batman Begins, starring Christian Bale in the title role, which chronicled the early years of the superhero. Nolan first garnered attention from critics and fans in 2000 with the groundbreaking drama Memento, which he wrote and directed. He went on to direct the thriller Insomnia, starring Al Pacino and Robin Williams, and recently wrapped production on The Prestige, with Hugh Jackman and Bale.

Bale was most recently seen in the ensemble cast of Terrence Malick’s The New World. His other credits include Little Women, Portrait of a Lady, Metroland, American Psycho, Laurel Canyon and Steven Spielberg’s Empire of the Sun, which was his first starring role.

Ledger most recently earned Oscar Golden Globe, BAFTA and SAG Award nominations and won the New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Actor for his portrayal of Ennis Del Mar in the award-winning drama Brokeback Mountain. His other credits include Casanova, Monster’s Ball, Lords of Dogtown, The Brothers Grimm and The Patriot.

“Chris’ unique vision is what made Batman Begins such an outstanding film and we could not imagine anyone else at the helm of The Dark Knight,” said Robinov. “We also can’t wait to see two such formidable actors as Christian and Heath face off with each other as Batman and The Joker.”

“I'm excited to continue the story we started with Batman Begins,” added Nolan. “Our challenge in casting The Joker was to find an actor who is not just extraordinarily talented but fearless. Watching Heath Ledger's interpretation of this iconic character taking on Christian Bale’s Batman is going to be incredible.”

I just became aware of these Edgar Rice Burroughs from Bison Frontiers of the Imagination, an imprint of the University of Nebraska Press.

At the Earth's CoreThis commemorative edition features an introduction by Gregory A. Benford and an afterword on the science of At the Earth’s Core by Phillip R. Burger. Also included are a map of Pellucidar, a glossary of terms and names by Scott Tracy Griffin, a contemporary review, and the classic J. Allen St. John illustrations.

The Land That Time ForgotThis commemorative edition features the entire Caspak trilogy in one volume, as intended by the author. In his introduction, Mike Resnick celebrates Edgar Rice Burroughs and the timeless appeal of this story. Also included are Scott Tracy Griffin’s glossary of terms from the Caspakian language, a rare map of Caspak drawn by Burroughs, and the classic J. Allen St. John illustrations.

Lost on VenusThis edition features an introduction by celebrated writer Kevin J. Anderson and the original illustrations by J. Allen St. John.

The Moon MaidThe most complete version of The Moon Maid saga ever made available, this edition contains the story as published serially, along with numerous passages, sentences, and words excised from the magazine version or added later by the author. This edition also features an introduction by Terry Bisson, new illustrations by Thomas Floyd, the classic frontispiece by J. Allen St. John, essays by scholar Richard J. Golsan and writer Phillip R. Burger, a glossary by Scott Tracy Griffin, and a compendium of alterations to the text.

PellucidarIllustrated by J. Allen St. John With an introduction by Jack McDevitt Afterword by Phillip R. Burger

Pirates of VenusThis commemorative edition features new illustrations by Thomas Floyd, the original frontispiece by J. Allen St. John, an afterword by Phillip Burger, a glossary of Amtor terms by Scott Tracy Griffin, a map of Amtor drawn by Edgar Rice Burroughs that appeared in the first edition, and an introduction by acclaimed science fiction and horror novelist F. Paul Wilson.

Master of Adventure
The Worlds of Edgar Rice Burroughs By Richard A. Lupoff Foreword by Michael Moorcock Preface by Henry Hardy Heins With an introduction to the Bison Book Edition by the author With an essay by Phillip R. BurgerRichard A. Lupoff, the respected critic and writer who helped spark a Burroughs revival in the 1960s, reveals fascinating details about the stories written by the creator of Tarzan. Featured here are outlines of all of Burroughs’s major novels, with descriptions of how they were each written and their respective sources of inspiration. This Bison Books edition includes a new foreword by fantasy writer Michael Moorcock, a new introduction by the author, a final chapter by Phillip R. Burger, as well as corrected text and an updated bibliography.

The Bison series also includes these novels by/about pulp fave Clark Ashton Smith: